Madrid through pictures

With all the flights cancellation over the last 2 days due to the heavy snow in the UK, we were really lucky that our flight to Madrid wasn't canceled.

What I liked most about Madrid is the sky. It was so clear and you could see the clouds moving so fast right before your eyes. The architectures of the buildings were impressive and the layout of the town was really organised with straight and broad roads throughout the city.

Plazza Mayor - the famous square with Christmas market.

It was weird to see wigs and masks selling at the stalls and people wearing those disguises at night.

Merry-go-round

Blogger in action

Gigantic prawn outside one of the restaurants in Plazza Mayor.

Told you about the sky. You can see the light reflected on the tiles too.

I apologise for my constant complains of hunger. M was nice enough to treat us to Churros which is something like doughnut dipped in chocolate. The chocolate was more of a dip than a drink as it was really sweet and thick.

Using an SLR camera to take picture of the whole group is not easy.

One of the nice buildings - Metropolis

On our way towards Plaza de La Cibeles

Palacio de Cibeles - looks really impressive from the front.

At Plaza de La Cibeles

Cibeles fountain - their roundabouts are really impressive

Puerta de alcala - Built to commemorate the entry into the city of King Charles III. The semicircular archways are for carriages and the smaller square archways on both sides are for pedestrians.

The story of Buen Retiro Park:

There was once a group of good friends who went on a picnic.

They really loved the greenery and fresh air even in this season. That was how dedicated to nature they were.

At one point, N stumbled upon this beautiful pond with an impressive monument.

Happily, she called her friends so that they could take a picture with it.

P wanted to have a solo shot of herself but after half a hour, she was still trying to find the best angle.

A got really annoyed and couldn't take it anymore. He wanted a solo picture of himself too. So, he kicked P away. When M and N tried to calm him down, he wouldn't listen and kicked them away too.

P managed to recover first and with her super kick, sent A flying.

The kick wasn't powerful enough. A came crawling back. In the end, P used her ultimate skill and blasted him away once and for all.

Defeated, A gave up on the solo picture and swore that he will return once he's trained enough to defeat P.

The end.

Ok, enough of the crappy story. Back to Madrid.

Bear and the Madrono tree

It represents Madrid's coat-of-arm, signifying the abundance of bears and woods.

Puerta del Sol square

Continuation of the epic of Buen Retiro park

After 5 years, the friends finally managed to forgive and forget. They had a reunion over a Tapas meal in one of the pubs in Madrid.

The photo which reveals our natural expressions:

P-the daydreamer, A-the always bored, M-the perfect teeth, N-the one who is only natural when she eats.

We had trouble ordering as there were no English menu in this pub frequented by the locals. But the food was really delicious and cheap. From Caesar salad, Baguette with ham and quail egg, Grilled chicken with pineapple, Patatas Bravas, to Paella. My favourite was Setas Empanadas con Alioli which was battered mushrooms with garlic and olive sauce. Yummy!

The many expressions during the reunion. After 5 years, A still tried to recycle old jokes and we grew bored too quickly.

The place where friends became friends again.

I promise that this will be the end of the nonsense.

Best dessert in Madrid - Napolitana from La Mallorquina bakery in central Madrid. It was something like custard in the middle wrapped in really soft bun. I'm missing it already.

Lost people

We wanted to visit the palace the next morning before we fly to Casablanca. But due to the rainy weather, we abandoned plan.

Next post: Casablanca, the first taste of Morocco

Wicked

What more can I say, this theater was just WICKED!

A story about how the origins of the Wicked witch of the West and the Good Fairy of the East. It is not as straight forward as you think.

After getting our tickets which was 25 pounds for student, sitting at the first row from the stage. A bit too close to the speakers and the actors in my opinion. Next time, choose at least 5 rows away.

It was at the Apollo Victoria Theatre. I am still dazzled by the acting and singing of the performers. Pure dedication by the make-up artist to be painting Wicked's face and neck green for each performance.

See that dragon prop at the top of the stage? That moves and smoke comes out of the nostrils during the play. I was impressed by the props. How a bridge came down and 1 second later I see actors running across it. Awesome. The singing was not bad too. A bit high pitched for me.

Loved the ambiance of the whole theater. There was a large map of Oz which replaced the curtains before the start of the show.

I wished I was studying in London. It's so easy for them to go for theaters. I wonder will there be another opportunity for me.

I lied in my last post that I was going to blog about Madrid. Let me rectify it and say it now. Next up: Madrid.

London Markets and Winter Wonderland

Apologies for the delayed post. Been super busy recovering from the trip and starting on A&E which doesn't make recovery any faster.

London Markets
I loved the markets in London. There's just so much to see and so much food to eat!

It was non-stop food trying and our first stop was the Bagel shop:

First time having beef which had the structure of crabsticks. That was how tender and elastic the meat was. Thanks sifu for the treat! There were all sorts of variety like salmon bagels too. I had a bit too much mustard in mine and was almost crying while finishing it.

Next stop was the grilled fish stall. All sorts of fishes from grilled salmon to seabass for only 4 pounds. What a bargain.

Christmas market:

From fake snow to German sausages. Not a big market but definitely more exciting that the Christmas market I saw in Madrid.

Defrosting inside Starbucks before we continued our trip.

Went into Harrolds but this will only be the place where I make purchases when I'm working.

I love how they package the premix for cookies. Once baked, you can store them in the same container.

Winter Wonderland

Strolling across Hyde park to get to Winter Wonderland. Loved the silhouette view

Entrance

I felt like a kid again. Was tempted to go on a few of the rides but due to the extreme cold weather and knowing that I was going to be broke soon, I didn't.

We had Dim Sum at this Taiwanese restaurant and the food was really good.

Next up, Madrid.

2010

Hello 2010. I wished I knew what you have installed for me this year. 2009 was a mixture of excitement and stress and I do hope that 2010 wouldn't be as stressful and exciting but I have a feeling that I will get more than what I am bargaining for.

What do I want to achieve this year? Hmmmm......

Grasp the opportunity whenever it comes my way to try new things


Make time to engage with my inner self but not falling asleep after being too relaxed.

Making sure that that I see no regrets when looking back at my shadows.

Smile and laugh, even in the middle of falling.

Gather enough momentum, not only to get back up on my feet, but to leap.

Learn how to stand on my own feet, or when things are difficult, own foot and not quaver.

I foresee that 2010 will be contained with much more excitement. More decision making. Much more growing up to do. I will survive!

Happy New Year to all my readers!!! Are you all still keeping your new year resolutions?